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U.S. DEFENSE BUDGETS AND MILITARY SPENDING

Information, Documents, and Publications. Reference aid. Preliminary edition.

By George Caldwell,
Senior Specialist in U.S. Government Documents
Serial & Government Publications Division
Library of Congress

March 1992

                      FIRST STOP: GENERAL STATISTICS

U.S. Bureau of the Census. Statistical Abstract of the United States. Annual.
U.S. Office of Management and Budget. Budget of the United States Government. 
 Annual.
American Statistics Index. Congressional Information Service, Inc.

subject terms: "Defense budgets and appropriations." "Defense expenditures."


                DETAILED STATISTICS; SOME PRIMARY SOURCES

1.  Budget of the United States Government. Appendix (formerly a separate      
    volume).
2.  Appropriations hearings for the Defense Department, especially ones by the 
    House Appropriations Subcommittee on Defense. More information below.
3.  Appropriations Committee reports and Conference reports on defense     
    appropriations bills (p.2)
4.  Public Laws resulting from the defense appropriation bills.
5.  Defense Department documents C-1, P-1, and R-1. More information below    
    (pp.1,4)
6.  Program Acquisition Costs by Weapons Systems. See below (page 4)
7.  Requirements for Recurring Reports to the Congress; a directory issued by
    the Comptroller General. U.S. General Accounting Office. No longer
    published, nor are tapes available to the public. Might prove useful at
    times for older information (and maybe current, too). 
8.  DIOR reports. Def. Dept.'s Directorate for Information Operations &
    Reports. See page 3.
9.  FORECAST INTERNATIONAL/DMS. Formerly, DMS Market Intelligence Reports. See 
    "DMS" page 4.
10. Other commercial publications. Examples: The Defense Budget; a
    comprehensive reference by Technology Trends Corp. U.S. Weapons Systems 
    Costs by Data Search Associates. See below.


                                SEARCH TERMS

LIBRARY OF CONGRESS SUBJECT HEADINGS: "Department of Defense --Appropriations 
 and expenditures." "United States--Armed Forces--Appropriations and 
 expenditures." 
 (See also the subdivision "Appropriations and expenditures" under branches of 
 the armed services). 
SCORPIO DATABASES: "Defense Budgets--U.S." "U.S. Department of Defense--
 Appropriations." "U.S. Department of Defense--Authorization."


                              BACKGROUND BOOKS

Research Guide to Current Military and Strategic Affairs. William Arkin.       
 Washington, D.C. Institute for Policy Studies. 1981.
The Defense Budget; a comprehensive reference. 1986. Technology Trends
 Corporation, Arlington, VA
The Defense Budget Process in the Washington Community. Patricia D. Woods. 1985.






                        ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

AIR FORCE BUDGET. (United States. Air Force. Office of Comptroller.) UG 633.U48 
 (8th edition was 1976. Sold by Supt. of Documents, GPO.) 76-375999
ANNUAL REPORT. 1) U.S. Dept of Defense. Report. 1st- 1948-. UA 23.2.A32.  
 2)___. Report, including the reports of the secretary of defense...Secretary 
 of the Army..Navy..Air Force. UA 23.2.A33.  3) Report of the Secretary of 
 Defense to the Congress.  1975-78.  ISSN 0098-3888.  4) Annual Report--Dept. 
 of Defense. 1978/79.  ISSN 0082-9854.  5) U.S. Dept. of Defense. Report of 
 the Secretary of Defense to the Congress on budget, authorizing requests, 
 and defense programs. 1979/80-. UA23.2.D476. D1.:[yr]. GPO S/N 008-000-00545-1
 (FY 91).
APPROPRIATION.  In effect, it gives an agency the money to spend. Technically, 
 a form of budget authority given by Congress to an agency or program, which   
 permits the spending of funds for purposes specifically set forth by          
 Congress. Appropriated for a given amount of time. Not necessarily spent in   
 one year.
APPROPRIATIONS HEARINGS.  Example: Department of Defense Appropriations for 
 1992. Hearings before a subcommittee of the Committee on Appropriations, 
 House of Representatives. 102d Congress, 1st session. Y4.Ap6/1:D36/5/992/pts. 
 1-8. Partial contents: Pt. 1: Report of the Secretary of Defense to the 
 President and Congress. Jan.1991. 134p. 1991 Joint Military Net Assessment. 
 120p. The United States Army Force Report to the 102d Congress..Fiscal Year 
 1992/93. 41p. + Appendix, 6p. (Appendix gives detailed figures on 
 appropriations for B-2A, C-17, F-16, Maverick, Titan, etc. The Secretary of 
 the Navy's Posture Statement. 24p. 
 Annual report to Congress..by...Commandant of the Marine Corps. 29p. PART 2 
 (2d vol. of hearings): Includes "B-2 Program, Fiscal Year 1991." PART 3: 
 Includes "Fiscal Year 1991 Operation Desert Shield/Desert Storm Supplemental."  
 PART 5: Includes Total Force Policy Report to the Congress. 71p. 
 (+ Supplemental, 197p.)
 PART 7: Includes Statement to the Congress FY 92 Army RDT&E and Procurement   
 Appropriations. 76p. 
AUTHORIZATION ACT.  Establishes or maintains a government program or agency. 
 May set specific limits on amount Congress can appropriate for a program. 
 Gives permission to an agency to spend funds. Example: H.R. 5167 and PL 98-525  
 for FY 1985. (Related documents: National Defense Authorization Act Fiscal 
 Year...;  Report to accompany [H.R. 4264, etc.] [100th Congress,, 2d session, 
 etc. H.Rp. 100-563, etc.] Other samples: National Defense Authorization Act 
 for Fiscal Year...; Report to accompany S.2335, 100th Congress, 2d session, 
 Sen.Rp. 100-326. National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 1989; 
 Conference Report to accompany H.R. 4481, 100th Congress, 2d session, H.Rp. 
 100-989.)
BLACK BUDGET.  A popular term for that part of the military budget which is    
 classified. Some call it the "super-secret" part, classified even higher than 
 "Top secret." Projects thus funded have been called "black programs." The     
 official name is Special Access Required Projects, or Special Access Programs. 
 Only a few members of Congress have access to this information. Controversy 
 has arisen over whether too much military information is hidden from Congress 
 and the public. GAO has identified about 185 programs. Black Programs have 
 been said to include the Strategic Defense Initiative (SDI, or "Star Wars;") 
 "stealth" planes and missiles; etc. The House Armed Services Committee said 
 a major part of the funding was for two programs, the Stealth Bomber and the 
 Advanced Cruise Missile, and that the "black" programs increased eightfold 
 in 1981-1986. There is no authoritative total, but recent estimates for secret  
 military spending are $30 to $35 billion per year. Programs may appear in the 
 DoD budget only as code names such as "Grass Blade," "Chalk Eagle," "Dark 
 Eyes," "Guardian Bear," and "Sea Nymph." A recent book on the subject is  
 Blank Check; the Pentagon's Black Budget, by Tim Weiner (UA25.5.W45 1990) 
 90-50291.
BUDGET AND FISCAL CODING MANUAL OF THE OFFICE OF THE SECRETARY OF DEFENSE.
 PB 89-100788. Buy from NTIS, or examine at Library of Congress Technical 
 Reports Section.
BUDGET GUIDANCE MANUAL.  DoD Directive 7110.1-1M. Internal document. Shows what 
 forms to use in budget process, etc. Usually not found in libraries. Revised  
 every year. To obtain, apply to Freedom of Information Office in the Defense  
 Department.nt.
BUDGET PRESS RELEASES.  Sample: "Amended FY 1990/FY 1991 Dept. of Defense      
 Budget." 4/25/89.
BUDGET REVISION, DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE FISCAL YEARS 1990 & 1991.  PB 89-186878. 
 (NTIS & LC).
BUDGET OF THE UNITED STATES GOVERNMENT, FISCAL YEAR...  U.S. Office of Management 
 and Budget. One portion summarizes the President's proposed defense budget. An 
 Appendix volume, formerly published, contained detailed information on        
 appropriations and funds.
C-1. CONSTRUCTION PROGRAMS (C-1); Department of Defense Budget for Fiscal      
 Years...  For sale by NTIS, or available for examination in LC's Technical    
 Reports Section. Examples: PB 86-153012 (FY 1987). PB 87-138921 (1988 & 1989). 
 PB 88-165428 (FY 1988 & 1989, Amended FY 1988/1989 Biennial Budget). PB 89-   
 134902 (FY 1990 and 1991). PB 90-150004 (FY 1991). 
CONFERENCE REPORT.  Report issued after House and Senate conferees resolve     
 differences between bills passed in House and Senate. Sample: Defense         
 Appropriation, Fiscal Year 1979;...Conference Report. H.Rp. 95-1764. Serial Set 
 vol. 13201-15. Includes appropriation amounts for eight CH-47C Chinook        
 helicopters ($33 million); F-18 (fighter) Hornet ($429.5 million).
CONGRESSIONAL DESCRIPTIVE SUMMARIES.  Budget document. Lists program elements by 
 Congressional districts. For official use only. Limited distribution. FY87 DTIC: 
 Part 1, ADB 09949-0. Part 2, ADB 09949-1.
CONGRESSIONAL DISTRICTS.  Community Services Administration published data on  
 distribution of federal funds by Congressional districts until it was abolished 
 in 1981. Census Bureau provided only state figures for fiscal 1981 and fiscal 
 1982. Congress passed a resolution requiring Census Bureau to report spending 
 patterns for Congressional districts in FY 1983. Employment Research Associates, 
 a small consulting company in Lansing, Michigan, has published figures on     
 military expenditures by Congressional districts.
DEFENSE GUIDANCE.  Various names and descriptions used, some by newspapers:    
 Secret annual compilation of U.S military objectives as authorized within the 
 Pentagon. Secret annual long-range directive to the top military leaders. Annual 
 memorandum by Secretary of Defense with criteria, limitations. and factors for 
 budget submittals. In response, each DoD component submits a Program Objectives 
 Memorandum (POM). Provides direction for POMs. Basic document used by the     
 military in devising their long-range programs and budget plans. Other terms: 
 "The Guidance" and the "Consolidated Defense Guidance." (IN 1986, excerpts were 
 published in the Armed Forces Journal).
DESCRIPTIVE SUMMARY.  In depository collections, see D1.81:[yr]. However, in a 
 document such as the Descriptive Summary of the Research, Development, Test,  
 and Evaluation Army Appropriations Fiscal Year...(3 volumes) the information is 
 for official use only, so not available at Library of Congress. DTIC: ADB 110257 
 (Vol.1). ADB 110258 (Vol.2).
DIOR REPORTS.  These form a series of annual publications produced by the Defense 
 Department's Directorate for Information Operations and Reports. Sample titles: 
 100 Companies Receiving the Largest Dollar Volume of Prime Contract Awards    
 (approx. 12p.); 500 Contractors Receiving the Largest Dollar Volume of Prime  
 Contract Awards for RDT&E--P 02 (approx. 40p.); Dollar Summary of Prime Contract 
 Awards by Contractor, State or Country, and Place--ST 19 (approx 2100p.). In  
 recent years, GPO has sent the small P series publications to depository      
 libraries, but not the large ST series (Standard Tabulations). Current P series 
 sold by GPO. P series for prior fiscal years and all standard tabulations are 
 available for sale at NTIS. For information on NTIS stock, consult Government 
 Reports Annual Index volumes, or call NTIS Identification Unit. Some of the P 
 series reports are contained in American Statistics Index microfiche set. For 
 listing and description of all the DIOR series, with order information, see the 
 catalog of DIOR Reports published annually by the Directorate for Information 
 Operations and Reports, Washington Headquarters Services, Office of the       
 Secretary of Defense.  
(DMS) -- FORECAST INTERNATIONAL/DMS.  Formerly published by Defense Marketing  
 Services, a division of Jane's Publishing. An extensive series of large volumes 
 with detailed information on numerous weapons systems and the companies which 
 have the contracts to produce them. Sample volumes: U.S. Carriers (HE         
 9803.A4d44); Electronic Systems (HD 9696.A3U5364); Military Laser...; Missiles, 
 Spacecraft; etc. (Sample contents: The 1985 O&M:Companies volume shows the    
 company, General Dynamics, as having received in FY 1984 an estimated $40.5   
 million for support services on F-16 fighter aircraft; $29.5 million for      
 maintenance and repair services on the Tomahawk missile; $55 million for      
 modification and engineering of the Trident submarines; etc.) The LC Main     
 Reading Room reference collection has a number of DMS volumes. DMS information 
 is available online: Dialog File 589 is for DMS Market Intelligence Reports, and 
 File 588 is for DMS contractors records.
FORECAST INTERNATIONAL/DMS.  See  "(DMS)" above.
FINANCIAL SUMMARY TABLES.  Comptroller, Office of the Secretary of Defense.    
 Annual. (Library of Congress information: UA 23.2.D47e. 88-659059. Serial Record 
 main entry: "United States. Financial..." Holdings: only 1988/89, 1 vol., as of 
 3/27/92). Not listed in the Monthly Catalog of U.S. Government Publications,  
 1976-1991.
FIVE-YEAR DEFENSE PROGRAM (FYDP).  Long-range budget for weapons to be purchased 
 5 years into the future. Secretary of Defense's current plan. updated 3 times 
 a year, with line item, program, and account funding for next five years. Fat 
 books organized by broad themes. E.G., one volume on nuclear weapons, one volume 
 on conventional weapons, etc. Senator Weicker contended some years ago in the 
 NY Times that the Defense Department had two different sets of books-- one 5- 
 year plan for Congress, and a different set for the Pentagon only (6/22/88).
JUSTIFICATION BOOKS.  Also known as Congressional Justification Books, or      
 Justification Estimates. Defense Department sends them to Congress. Samples: 
 1) Department of the Air Force Justification of Estimates for Fiscal Years    
 1988/1989 submitted to Congress January 1987; Operation and Maintenance, Air  
 Force. Vol. 1 (PB 87-181889), Vol. 2 (PB 87-174595). Air National Guard FY 1988 
 and 1989 (PB 87-174587).  2) Department of the Army Justification of Estimates 
 for Fiscal Year...Submitted to Congress: Procurement Programs. Separate volumes 
 on "Missiles," "Weapons and Tracked Combat Vehicles," etc.  3) Department of  
 Navy Justification of Estimates FY83: Operation and Maintenance. (See  
"OPERATIONS..." below).  4) Justification of Estimates for FY...Submitted to   
 Congress...Operation and Maintenance, Army. Annual. (LC info.: 90-640434. Serial 
 Record main entry: "United States. Justification..." Holdings: 1990-1991, Parts 
 1-3 [as of 3/27/92]). Justification of Estimates for Fiscal Year...Submitted to 
 Congress...Reserve Personnel, Army. (LC info.: 87-855802. Serial Record main  
 entry: "United States. Justification..." Holdings: only 1987, as of 3-27-92.)
LINE ITEMS.  Budgets are approved at the line item level. Line item numbers are 
 sequential within appropriations. The President requests and the Congress     
 approves (or disapproves) budget authority for each line. A line item can     
 represent an entire program. But usually a program has several line items, for: 
 RDT&E, procurement, spares, modifications, etc. (See also "PROGRAM ELEMENTS" and 
 PEN numbers, below).
MILITARY POSTURE.  United States Military Posture for FY...  Prepared by the   
 Organization of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. ("Primary purpose..supplemental    
 testimony by the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and members of the     
 Organization of JCS at Congressional hearings in support of Fiscal Year Defense 
 Budget.") D 5.19:[yr] (Earlier, D 5.2:P84/[yr]). 
MILITARY POSTURE HEARINGS.  Example: House Armed Services Committee hearings on 
 Military Posture...Feb. 3-...May 5, 1981. H.A.S.C. No. 97-6.
NATIONAL DEFENSE BUDGET ESTIMATES.  Office of the Assistant Secretary          
 (Comptroller). Annual. LC no. sn91-19532. OCLC #9841699. Not in the Library of 
 Congress' general collection or depository collection. Not in Monthly Catalog 
 of U.S. Government Publications, 1976-1991.
OPERATIONS AND MAINTENANCE OVERVIEW.  Office of the Secretary of Defense.      
 Separate volumes for Army, Air Force, and Navy. "Program activities" section at 
 back shows things like military recruiting--numbers 7, 8, and 9. Not in LC's  
 general or depository collections. Not in Monthly Catalog. A caller had 1987  
 edition obtained through Freedom of Information. 
P-1. PROCUREMENT PROGRAM (P-1); Department of Defense Budget for Fiscal Year....
 Office of Asst. Secr. of Def. (Comptroller). DoD budget submittal document    
 listing all procurement line items, thus providing line item information.     
 Unclassified version issued since early 1970s. Sent annually to DoD oversight 
 committees of Congress at the same time the President sends the Budget of the 
 U.S. Government. It is derived from the DoD Five Year Defense Program Annex   
 database. Separate sections for Army, Navy, Air Force, and Defense agencies. The 
 unclassified version is provided to the DoD's Public Affairs office. The P-1  
 document has a supporting document called Justification of Estimates, which   
 presents background and rationale for each line item or group of line items. For 
 sale by NTIS. Examples: PB 86-153038 (FY 1987). PB 87-138947 (FY 1988 & 1989). 
 PB 88-165428 (FY 1988 & 1989, Amended FY 1988/1989 Biennial Budget). PB 89-   
 134894 (FY 1990 & 1991). PB 90-149998 (FY 1991). PB reports can be examined   
 (microfiche) in LC's Technical Reports Section. P-1's are contained in the    
 American Statistics Index microfiche set (3544-32). 
PROGRAM ACQUISITION COSTS BY WEAPON SYSTEMS: Department of Defense Budget for  
 Fiscal Year... Annual. (LC info.: UA23.2.D47f. 89-644102. Gen. collection: 1  
 vol., 1988-89, as of 3/27/92. LC Tech. Reports Sec. has PB editions on        
 microfiche). Not in Monthly Catalog of U.S. Govt. Pubns., 1976-91. NTIS sample: 
 PB 90-150012 (FY 1991). Center for Defense Information library reported having 
 1974+, as did Pentagon Library.  
PROGRAM ELEMENTS.  Program Elements are the building blocks of the budget. Each 
 line item in defense budget has a Program Element Number (PEN). A program     
 element is an activity which combines men, equipment, and facilities. It can be 
 a project, a grouping of forces, or manpower. (Example: budget for B-52       
 squadrons was broken down into a number of program elements such as PEN 2601, 
 Strategic radar update; PEN 2632, Offensive avionics systems; etc. The DoD    
 documents C-1, P-1, and R-1 list program elements as line items in numerical  
 order by proj.el.numbers. Program Element Descriptive Summaries (PEDS) are    
 justification docs. that accompany another document, R-1, with budget requests 
 presented by program elements.
R-1.  RESEARCH, DEVELOPMENT, TEST & EVALUATION (RDT&E) PROGRAMS (R-1); Department 
 of Defense Fiscal Year... Office of Asst. Secr. of Def. (Comptroller). DoD    
 budget submittal document listing all RDT&E line items in numerical order by  
 program element numbers. Provided annually to DoD oversight committees of     
 Congress when President sends Budget. Unclassified version goes to DoD Public 
 Affairs. For sale by NTIS; examples: PB 86-153020 (FY 1987). PB 87-138939 (FY 
 1988 & 1989). PB 88-165451 (Amended FY 1988/89 Biennial Budget). PB 89-134928 
 (FY 1990 & 1991). PB 150020 (FY 1991). PB editions in microfiche are available 
 for examination in LC's Tech. Reports Section. Amer. Statis. Index microfiche 
 set: # 3544-33.
SELECTED ACQUISITIONS REPORTS (SARs).  Definitive Pentagon documents on costs of 
 weapons systems. Quarterly. Not available to the public. Defense Secretary    
 submits to Congress each fiscal quarter this report on status of current major 
 defense acquisition programs. SARs have been said to be about 1200 pages long. 
 Only tiny summaries (1-2 pages each) are made public. Aerospace Daily has     
 published summaries as they came out.
SUPPORTING DATA; BUDGET ESTIMATES SUBMITTED TO CONGRESS DESCRIPTIVE SUMMARIES. 
 Annual. Two thick volumes. Classified, thus not in LC. Check with Armed Serv. 
 and Appropriations committees.
VOLUMES BY TED NICHOLAS AND DATA SEARCH ASSOCIATES.  Detailed info: U.S.       
 Historical Military Aircraft & Missile Data Book. U.S. Military Defense. U.S. 
 Weapon Systems Costs.     


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